Falconer Abdullah Al-Nuwaibit’s relationship with falcons was formed 34 years ago, when a lost falcon took care of him, discovering his fondness for these birds to change the direction of his compass towards this love, and freed himself from his work to acquire and sell them.
In his interview with Al Arabiya.net, he said that the falcon is a bird that is not loyal to its owner, so the shepherd is the one who initiates this love and loyalty to his bird, indicating that when the falcon is satiated or “is upset” or annoyed from the air, he leaves the falcon, and if he is hungry he returns to it.
Highest value hawk
Abdullah Al-Nuwaibit also said that falconry is an important matter in his life, as it represents his hobby and his trade. Concerning the types of birds, he revealed: “The common types of hawks, peregrine falcons, and den, and now there is a hybrid type, which is the lime. As for its prices, the highest value of a falcon sold in Saudi Arabia was one million seven hundred and fifty thousand riyals.”
He also showed that experience and patience are the best things that those who wish to deal with birds can acquire, as he sees that whoever keeps his falcon from fractures and diseases and is good at dealing with it is the true falconer, noting that sitting with adult falconers gains a person the benefit and learning.
It is rare for the bird to stay with its owner for more than 11 years, but the falcon “Mukhtar” holds a dear place in the Nuwait, where he has been accompanying him for 16 years, and they are united by wide affection and love.
He also mentions one of the difficult situations, saying: “Nine years ago, Mukhtar was lost to me in one of the private camps, after someone grabbed him by the tail wrongly, then he flew away and the GPS he was carrying broke down. I found him days later with his wing broken. The hospital told me that his treatment is difficult, I brought him home and hurried to treat him crying, which was the only time I cried for a falcon.”
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He also recounted another situation when he was accompanied by Prince Sultan bin Turki in Niger, where a falcon was lost among the cold mountains, and the Nubet began chasing it among hyenas and lions in perilous conditions, until he found it 70 kilometers from the camp.